You Become Whom You Associate With

There is an old saying that goes like, ’you can’t expect to soar like an eagle when you are hanging around with turkeys.’ Turkeys do look a lot like the eagles- they have feathers, have a beak, and even a beak. But can they fly? Turkeys can’t even take care of themselves and have to be fed. Eagles are fierce, they fly up high, they rule the sky. After all, you have a turkey on your thanksgiving dinner plate, not an eagle!

In our growing years, our parents have always made sure we hang around with ‘good’ kids or kids who won’t be a negative influence on us. Negative people can rub off their negative thoughts on you. People who always criticize others, judge everyone, find only faults, are the kind you should avoid. It is easy to criticize. We all do it from time to time, but we should stop. We should also stop hanging around people who do nothing but criticize others. Stop wasting your time on people without integrity and a positive aura. But being around with people of higher consciousness will make you positive and driven. Surround yourself with people who make you do things you thought were never meant for you. Surround yourself with people who are independent. Find people who are ambitious, people who are always looking up to doing something productive. These people may not necessarily be really talented, but their zeal to excel should make you want to aim for the sky.

Look around yourself. Everyone is moving forward in their lives. Are you moving in the right direction? Are you being productive? Does your company inspire you to be a better person? Or are they dragging you down? If yes, keep moving, you are doing well. If not, change. You won’t become who you were created to be if you don’t make changes. Be selective with the kind of people you are working/ hanging out with.

Your team should be the one consisting of people who support you, sharpen you. You should be friends with people who want to see you succeed. People will try to control you, manipulate you until you put your foot down and stop. BE willing to walk away if you feel stuck. Do not hang around folks who peer-pressure you into bad lifestyle choices. Who you associate with is more important than you could ever imagine. Do not accept anything less than the best – otherwise you are cheating yourself.

Birds of the same feathers flock together. But make sure you are flocking with the right kind of birds. The ones that conquer the sky and not the ones which sit in their nests all day, just making noises no one cares about.

Anum

Anum Yoon is the founder and editor of Current on Currency. She loves all things personal finance, which is why you'll find her work all over the PF blogosphere.